The Jamia Millia Islamia Teachers' Association has urged Vice Chancellor Najma Akhtar to build a 50-bed hospital by raising funds. According to the Jamia Teachers' Association (JTA), four serving teachers have lost their lives in the Coronavirus pandemic, besides the death of many non-teaching staff members and retired teachers. The appeal, which requested the VC to create a financial contribution head to raise funds, saw its secretary M Irfan Qureshi make the first contribution of Rs 50,000 for the proposed hospital on the campus.
JTA president Majid Jamil said the university should have some landmark achievement amid the completion of 100 years of its foundation. The Coronavirus pandemic and loss of many lives have "compelled us to leave with no option other than to release an appeal to fundraising for the noble cause of serving Jamia fraternity and humanity as a whole", Jamil said in a statement.
"I am confident that Jamia teachers, alumni and fellow citizens who want to support Jamia will contribute with an open heart and actively take part to translate this dream into a reality," Jamil said. According to the professor, it had been a 100-year-long dream for Jamia to have a full-fledged medical college and establishing a 50-bed hospital "will open the ways for Jamia Medical College soon, for which we are very hopeful and confident".
Delhi witnessed people scrambling for oxygen supplies, beds and anti-viral drugs amid the ferocious second coronavirus wave. It reported 13,287 new Coronavirus cases and 300 more fatalities on Wednesday, while the positivity rate came down to 17 per cent. Nafis Ahmad, a dentist in the faculty of Dentistry in Jamia, said the need of the hour was to raise a hospital at the university at the earliest. "Once ready, Jamia hospital will be operated in a manner to practice high-quality medical and healthcare," Ahmad said. "We hope that university will equip the proposed hospital with the most advanced equipment and expert medical and paramedical staff.
